Preparation and characterization of thermal/pH-sensitive hydrogel from carboxylated nanocrystalline cellulose

► The pH/thermal sensitive hydrogels were synthesized from CNCC. ► The hydrogels exhibited both pH-sensitive and thermal-sensitive properties. ► Swelling ratios of the hydrogels increased with the increase of CNCC. ► SEM supported that the added CNCC became an integral network of the hydrogels. ► Hydrogels' stiffness increased obviously when the amount of CNCC was increased.